Eternity
by kristii
Summary: On January 1st, 1000 C.T., the Neo-Queen Serenity will abdicate the royal throne to Serenity III. There is still one slight problem, however, with exactly who will serve in the Second Reign...


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Eternity, by Kristii

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I always wondered what happens to the Senshi when they retire 

from service: who takes their place when they resign from duty--or 

can they even relinquish their roles at all? 

This is my own answer to that question... 

A note: CT is a time thing, like AD or BC; 1 CT marks the year of 

Crystal Tokyo's founding. 

Comments -- aznvballgurl@yahoo.com 

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                Today is December 31, 999 CT. 

                Tomorrow, the world will change. 

                On the first day of the new millennium, Neo-Queen Serenity 

will relinquish her throne to her daughter; the First Royal Court will

disband, after one thousand years of service. Tomorrow, in less than

twelve hours, all power will shift to the hands of Serenity III; a 

new set of Guardians will replace those who have served since the 

beginning, and the former Guards will finally be allowed to live in 

peace...

                So says, at least, the Neo-Queen Serenity... 

----------

                "Mars!"

                The Lady Mars leapt up at the voice behind her, startled. 

"What the--" Her eyes widened in surprise as she took in her visitor; 

at that moment, she was the last person Mars had expected to find in 

her quarters. "Pluto? What are you doing here?"

                "There's been a problem." Pluto's eyes were unreadable as she 

spoke, betraying no emotion whatsoever. "The Queen requests your 

presence in the War Room immediately; the others are already waiting."

                "What happened?" 

                "You'll see when you get there." And Pluto swept out of the 

room, staff in hand; Mars hurried to catch up with her, knowing better 

than to ask any more questions...

                The Royal Court was already gathered in the War Room by the 

time Mars and Pluto arrived; the Neo-Queen Serenity was seated above 

her Guardians, a worried look in her eyes. King Endymion and Serenity 

III, Mars noticed, were nowhere to be seen. 

                "Mars is here, Your Majesty." Pluto nodded toward the Queen, 

moving to her side and bending down to whisper in her ear. 

                Mars took her seat by Venus as the two conferred, shooting an 

inquiring glance at her commander. "What's going on?" She asked 

softly, keeping her voice low. 

                "I don't know," Venus whispered back, her eyes on Serenity. 

"No one's been told anything, but something big must be up-I've never 

seen Serenity this worried..." 

                "I--"

                Serenity spoke then, and Mars hurriedly turned toward her, her 

conversation with Venus forgotten. "Senshi," the Queen said softly, 

her voice loaded with strain. "I don't know how to tell you this, 

but..." 

                She broke off, unable to continue, as seven pairs of eyes 

looked curiously at her own. "Pluto--"

                The Lady Pluto took over smoothly, gently squeezing the 

Queen's hand as she faltered. "You're all slated for retirement 

tomorrow," she said evenly, her voice devoid of all emotion. "The 

Queen has promised you that you could live eternity out in peace, free 

to pursue whatever interests you please, never again owing your lives 

to the Palace or to duty."

                "Yes," Venus said softly. "Why?"

                "I--" The Queen spoke again, lowering her eyes from the 

Senshi's inquiring gazes. "I--I lied. I'm sorry..." 

                There was a moment of incredulous silence; Mars was the first 

to speak, her eyes filled with confusion. "What?!" 

                "I--" The Queen was on the verge of tears; the Senshi had not 

seen her like this since the days before Crystal Tokyo. "Rei," she 

said softly, and Mars was surprised by her words. _Rei? How long has _

_it been since anyone has called me Rei?_ "Rei, Mako, Ami, Mina; 

Haruka, Michiru, Hotaru... I'm sorry... I know I promised you that you 

could retire tomorrow, but I can't--I can't--I didn't know--"

                "We've had a few surprises," Pluto cut in dryly. "Your 

daughters, it seems, have shown signs of aging." 

                "WHAT?!"

                "It seems we neglected to consider one thing when we decided 

on your retirement, Senshi," Pluto said quietly. "We drew from the 

Changing of the Guard rituals of the Silver Millennium, but we forgot

one important factor: 

                "Only the children of two immortals will live forever." 

                "Oh my God..." Mercury blanched suddenly, the first to realize

the meaning of Pluto's words. "Pluto--oh, my God, you don't mean--"

                "Yes." Pluto's eyes were dark, unreadable. "In those times, 

Senshi were retired after one thousand years of service; their 

daughters, sired of royal, immortal fathers, would then take their 

places. We did not realize this, but... there are no immortal men left 

now, save the King. Your daughters may live longer than the average 

mortal, but they will die just as surely as their human fathers before

them..." 

                "Oh, no..." Mars' face drained of color, as did Venus' beside 

her. "So you're saying..." 

                "The Royal Court of Serenity III, if instated as planned, will

not serve her past 1250 CT." 

                The room fell absolutely silent; Jupiter stood up very slowly, 

her face white with fury. "What's your point, Pluto?" She asked, her 

voice laced with rage. "Once this day is over, I am never putting on 

this fuku again. We had an agreement here--I've done my thousand years 

of duty; I'm not staying til the end of eternity!"

                "Mako-" the Queen began, but Pluto cut her off brusquely: 

                "That choice is not yours to make, Jupiter." Pluto's eyes 

still betrayed no emotion, and she levelly met the other girl's 

furious gaze. "Sit down. Now." Something in her voice, however, was 

more potent than rage; Jupiter shot her a look of death, but took her 

seat, seething. "I'm sorry, Senshi, but the House of Serenity requires 

your service. You will be expected to report to duty tomorrow as 

usual, your loyalty transferred to Serenity III. Is that understood?" 

                For a long, long moment, there was no answer. Then, the Lady 

Venus finally found her voice: "Lady Aino Minako," she said softly, 

her voice barely audible, "regrets that her daughter cannot fulfill 

her duties to the House of Serenity." She looked down at the table; 

Mars saw a tear slide down her face, drop down to the smooth mahogany. 

"If it so pleases Her Majesty the Neo-Queen Serenity, the Lady will 

answer for her daughter's shortcomings, and fill her spot in the Court 

of Her Majesty Serenity III...." 

                She could not continue any longer; pushing back her chair 

abruptly, the Lady Venus fled the room, her face buried in her hands. 

For a moment, all sat frozen; then, the Lady Mars spoke quietly: "Hino 

Rei will serve," she whispered, "in her daughter's place, all the 

roles and functions required of her by Her Majesty Serenity III." 

                And then she too stood, nodded toward the Queen, and left the 

room quickly. The Lady Neptune's voice followed her out the door, 

pledging resignedly to serve in place of her daughter...

 ----------

                It was night now; the annual New Year's ball had begun 

downstairs. Mars could hear the music floating up to her room as she 

sat in the darkness, removed from the revelry. She had not moved since

she returned to her room from that afternoon's meeting; now, the music 

finally stirred her to life again, and she stood slowly...

                A small jeweled dagger lay on her desk; with one swift 

movement, Mars seized it. She slid the blade from the hilt, watching 

it glint in the moonlight. For a few seconds, she stood frozen, 

watching the light dance over the jeweled metal; then, abruptly, she 

snatched her passport off her desk and plunged the blade through the 

white plastic cover... 

                _This is the passport Mercury made for me yesterday_, she 

thought darkly, slashing the blade through the passport. _We were so _

_happy then, preparing for our new lives; we thought we were finally _

_free of our oaths, finally free to live happy, finally free to think _

_for ourselves and not for Serenity..._

                The plastic shards fluttered to the ground, Hino Rei's first 

photograph in over a millennium fluttering down with them. The Lady 

Mars stared at the pieces for a long moment, then dropped to her 

knees, sobbing:

                _Never again_, she thought dimly, _never again. Never again _

_will Hino Rei walk the streets of Tokyo... As long as Mars lives, Rei _

_Hino must die; and Mars can never resign now..._

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